On December 12, 2018, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” or the “Commission”) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) commencing the 2018 Quadrennial Review of the Commission’s media ownership rules. The FCC is required under Section 202(h) of the Communications Act to review most of its broadcast ownership rules every four years to determine whether … Continue Reading
Meet the RUFRN, possible successor to the SUFRN. A new NPRM reflects the FCC's continuing struggle to devise an ownership reporting mechanism that will give it what it wants.… Continue Reading
The Minority Media and Telecommunications Council has provided arguable impetus for the FCC to try, again, to toss (or at least relax) its Newspaper-Broadcast Cross-Ownership prohibition -- and the FCC wants to know what you think about it.… Continue Reading
An FCC proposal would abandon "special use FRNs" in Ownership Reports and require social security number-based FRNs instead . . . for noncommercial licensees, too!… Continue Reading
The Supreme Court has declined to review the Circuit's decision overturning the FCC's 2008 revisions to the newspaper/broadcast cross-ownership rule.… Continue Reading
Three days before Christmas, the FCC delivered a little present for broadcasters: a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking proposing changes to its media ownership rules. Welcome to Phase II of the 2010 Quadrennial Regulatory Review process.… Continue Reading
The Media Bureau has reminded commercial broadcasters that their biennial Ownership Reports (Form 323) are due to be filed by December 1, 2012. But the Bureau doesn't mention some information that we think all Form 323 filers are entitled to know.… Continue Reading
The Commission has announced that the time has come for the next round of biennial Ownership Reports (Form 323) for commercial broadcasters -- and it's already pushed the deadline back a month, to December 1, 2011. But watch out -- the Commission's notice says nothing about the effective elimination of the all-encompassing SSN-based FRN requirement.… Continue Reading
Townsquare Media thought it had a perfect, and perfectly legal, way to re-shuffle ownership of a bunch of radio stations and finesse its way around the multiple ownership rules. But the only player at the table that really mattered called a misdeal.… Continue Reading
Last week's Court decision effectively confirmed that nobody needs to provide his/her Social Security Number (SSN) for a new FRN in order to file ANY Ownership Report - biennial or otherwise - until further notice.… Continue Reading
The FCC has responded to the Form 323 mandamus petition in the D.C. Circuit, and the petitioners have replied. Read all about it here.… Continue Reading
With the July 8 deadline for filing commercial ownership reports fast approaching, the D.C. Circuit has ordered the FCC to respond to claims that the revised Form 323 filing requirements were not imposed lawfully.… Continue Reading
As of April 9, 2010, the revised Form 323 to be used by commercial broadcasters for their biennial Ownership Reports is available for use.… Continue Reading
You'll never guess what snuck onto the OMB website a week or two ago - some more changes to the draft Ownership Report (FCC Form 323) for commercial broadcasters.… Continue Reading
Two days before Christmas, and all was neither calm nor bright for Form 323 at the FCC. FHH and ten state broadcast associations took the FCC and its form to court, while the Media Bureau, faced with mounting evidence of problems with the on-line form, suspended the January 11 deadline to give the staff time to investigate those problems.… Continue Reading
On December 8, revised Form 323, the new Ownership Report form for commercial broadcasters, was at long last made available for review on the FCC's website.… Continue Reading
Breaking a long silence, the Media Bureau has at last announced that the revised Ownership Report (Form 323) for commercial broadcasters should be available sometime in the next five days.… Continue Reading
Fletcher, Heald & Hildreth has filed a Petition with the Commission, asking it to review the social security number/FRN component of its new Ownership Report (FCC Form 323) for commercial broadcast stations.… Continue Reading
